Cinderella Wilson Area High School softball team looks to continue season

View full sizeWilson coach Sara Ulrich talks with her squad after defeating Saucon Valley in the District 11 playoffs Wednesday at Saucon Valley High School in Hellertown. Express-Times Photo | BRIAN FREED

The two shall meet at 5 p.m. Tuesday at Moravian College in a Class AAA semifinal game. Palmerton (16-5) and Southern Lehigh (12-8) square off in the other AAA semifinal with the final set for Thursday at Patriots Park in Allentown.

Wilson (12-9) is led by its 5-foot-4 ball of energy, Michaela Moninghoff, a four-year starter who either plays shortstop or pitches and plans to play at Lebanon Valley in the fall. Moninghoff and catcher and classmate Jaclyn Badman are the first Warrior players to start in the district playoffs in three different seasons.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK:

Name: Michaela Moninghoff

School: Wilson Area High
School

Class: Senior

Position:
Pitcher/shortstop

Statistics: Tossed a
two-hit shutout with three strikeouts and reached base all three times at the
plate on two singles and a walk in the Warriors' first District 11 victory in
school history, a 2-0 triumph over Saucon Valley in a Class AAA
quarterfinal game on Wednesday. The four-year starter is 8-3 in the circle this
season and leads Wilson with a .457 batting average, five home runs and 26
RBIs.

The Golden Hawks (19-2) and their six seniors are 69-24 over the last four seasons. At the head of the class is St. Peter’s-bound pitcher Joelle Morey and Manhattan recruit Lauren Visconti, the left fielder who sets the tone at the top of Becahi’s batting order.

Morey (49-16) will attempt to become the first Becahi pitcher to win 50 career games and the 34th known player in region history to reach that feat. The Hawks, beaten by Pottsville 5-1 in 10 innings in last year’s AAA title game, are favored to win their seventh overall District 11 title in the second highest class and sixth in an odd-numbered year.

All six titles were won in the last 14 seasons and all but one came under present coach Rich Mazza. The Hawks reached the PIAA state finals in 2009, losing 1-0 to Greencastle-Antrim in nine innings. This team has all the makings of a similar run.

However, Wilson is not happy to just be here. Third-year coach Sara Ulrich would love to give the three-time LVC champs more than just a game.

“We’re really excited to play Bethlehem Catholic and really looking forward to it,” Ulrich said after beating Saucon. “Getting in there and doing it again. We need to play mistake free. It’ll be a great experience for the girls.”

Ulrich pointed to Moninghoff’s pitching, a big hit by Hannah Calantoni, aggressive base running by Tawny Handelong and good outfield defense as being keys to beating Saucon.

“This is the first time we’ve gone to the next round in school history,” Ulrich said. “Now we need the same collaborative effort against Beca.”

DISTRICT 11 CLASS AAAA

Defending champion Liberty (14-7), which received a fortunate seed at five, took advantage by beating upstarts Bangor and Freedom in the first two rounds. The Hurricanes now await the winner of today’s game pitting No. 1 seed Pleasant Valley (15-7) and No. 9 Stroudsburg (16-7) for a 7 p.m. semifinal matchup Tuesday at Patriots Park.

Second-seeded Northampton (20-2) plays No. 3 Parkland (16-5) in the first semifinal game at 5 p.m. Senior righty Marly Laubach (20-2) pitched a one-hitter in a 1-0 eight-inning win over Pottsville in the quarterfinals. She struck out 12 to break Michelle Bair’s season school record of 240 set in 2002.

Laubach also became the 25th known region player to reach 20 wins in a season and just the second from Northampton County. Cortney Madea set the K-Kids' school record for wins in a season when she went 22-1 after winning her final 21 games in leading Northampton to the 1996 PIAA state title.

Laubach tossed her third career no-hitter against the Trojans in a 7-0 win on May 7 and the Konkrete Kids scored eight runs in the top of the seventh inning to beat Parkland 8-0 on April 2 when Laubach allowed just one hit.

Third-seed Pen Argyl (16-6) meets the best team in the Schuylkill League regular season in No. 2 seed Pine Grove (19-2) at 3 p.m. Tuesday at Northwestern High School in one semifinal. These two teams have won the last five AA titles (Pine Grove in 2009, 2010, 2012 and Pen Argyl in 2008 and 2011) after neither had won a championship before that.

REGION RANKINGS:

1. Bethlehem
Catholic 19-2

2. Northampton 20-2

3. North
Hunterdon 20-9

4. Parkland 16-5

5. Warren
Hills 18-5

6. Liberty 14-7

7. Freedom 15-8

8. Emmaus 15-7

9. Catasauqua 17-5

10. Pen Argyl 16-6

No. 1 seed and Colonial League champ Catasauqua (17-5) plays North Schuylkill (12-9) at 7 p.m. Tuesday at Parkland High school in the other semifinal.

NJSIAA

One Warren County and two Hunterdon County teams still remain in the state tournament after the 10 schools from the two counties went 7-3 in their first round games.

North Warren (15-10), the 12th seed in North 1 Group 1, set a school record for wins in a season under third-year coach Erica Schroeder with a 5-0 win over No. 5 Pompton Lakes and hosts No. 13 Boonton (16-9) Tuesday in a quarterfinal game.

Hackettstown (4-17), seeded 13th, beat No. 4 McNair 8-3 in a first round North 2 Group 2 contest but lost to No. 5 West Essex (12-14) 4-3 in eight innings Sunday in a quarterfinal game to end its season.

North Hunterdon (20-9), the No. 2 seed in North 2 Group 4, mercy-ruled Ridge and Phillipsburg in the first two rounds and hosts No. 3 Westfield (19-5) at 4 p.m. Tuesday in the semifinals. The Lions beat Westfield 6-4 on the road two weeks ago.

South Hunterdon (9-12), the 14th seed in Central Group 1, won its first two games over No. 4 Point Pleasant Beach and No. 12 Keyport to reach the sectional semifinals for the first time since 2002.

South plays the winner of top-seeded Florence (20-0) and No. 8 Burlington City (10-12) on Tuesday in a semifinal game. This is the second season in the last 22 that the Blue Eagles have won at least one state game.